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VietnamStepping into the missing middle of women-led SMEs
Too small for private equity and too big for microfinance, South East Asia’s women-led SMEs struggle to access capital. Beacon Fund meets them with a flexible debt fund built to drive gender equality and social impact.
Investment window · 14 April 2026
- US$3 million
- SIFI investment
- 100%
- Portfolio companies
- 17,000+
- Students reached
Junior, first-loss equity
Meeting the 2X Criteria
Affordable technology education, around 25% women
At a glance
Beacon Fund
Investment window
- SIFI support
- US$3 million junior equity
- Year of SIFI investment
- 2026
- Status
- Active
- Focus
- Vietnam, South East Asia
- Sector
- Multi-sector
- Economic focus
- Lower middle-income countries
- Asset class
- Private debt
- Target close
- US$100 million
- Launch year
- 2020
Target SDGs
The challenge
Only 10 to 20% of women-owned and women-led SMEs in South East Asia can access formal finance that meets their needs, even though women own most of the region’s registered SMEs. These businesses are too small for private equity and too big for microfinance. They grow too steadily for venture capital and lack the collateral banks require. The result is a missing middle of profitable, cash-generating companies with loyal customers and deep roots in their communities.
What SIFI backed
Beacon Fund is South East Asia’s first private debt fund dedicated to gender equality and social impact. It lends up to US$2 million for capital investment to companies in female-driven consumer markets such as education, healthcare and retail, and to women-led exporters in agriculture and speciality manufacturing, cutting interest rates when impact targets are met.
What changed
All portfolio companies meet the 2X Criteria. Each has at least one active female founder, women hold more than 30% of board seats and make up 60 to 75% of employees. The companies support around 2,000 full-time jobs in Vietnam. In education, student numbers grew from about 2,800 in 2021 to more than 17,000 in 2025, and the share of women in technology courses rose from 13% to about 25%.